Bye

Well, I can't add photos for some reason, but I'll be back when I find a new computer and update the posting with some pictures.
Yesterday I took off from the Burlington Airport. Nancy, Ian, Cavan, Linda and Big Skip came to see me off. Big Skip and Linda have been great at helping me pack and get ready for this next adventure. I can honestly say that I didn't cry, but after reading the good bye notes from the O'Brien family, I did get a little sad. Ian wanted to see me off, so after waving good bye to me as I entered the gangway, everyone headed up to the visitors tower to wave to the plane during take off. I was very luck to have a window seat that looked out over the terminal and as the wheels left the ground, I could see the hands of my friends and family waving. I waved back, but I am sure that my tiny hand in the 12" window was impossible to pickup.

I thought some of the people on my flight from Chicago to Denver looked like "Ice People", but it wasn't until waiting for the shuttle that I finally introduced myself to them. I already have met a ton of great people and can't wait to meet the rest. After an hour or two wait, the shuttle picked us up and brought us to the hotel. I have to say, this is a great hotel! After getting settled in, I joined a few of my new friends at a Mongolian BBQ for dinner.
This morning I woke up, ate breakfast with my new friends and then headed over to RPSC headquarters. After signing in and receiving an arm band, I got to visit the finance person. I have to say, she is my new best friend. Stephanie gave me $440 in cold hard cash. This money is suppose to be fore meals while in Denver (dinner only), hotel in Christ Church, and any other meals while in NZ. I also found out that if my flight to the ice is boomeranged, I get another $200 a day in NZ. Any funds left over from travel are mine for the keeping. How great is this.
Orientation was pretty basic. You know, company mission, safety, harassment, other policies... One of the interesting things was that if you bring muddy boots into NZ, you could get fined $600 and your stuff confiscated. We also learned that someone from RPSC passing through customs yesterday in NZ was detained after they found "Adult" material in her luggage. The great thing is that the Raytheon Travel rep said if we have any items of that nature to visit the post office and mail it down. I don't know if anyone else gets a kick out of that, but I thought it was a funny story. In a little while, I'll be headed to dinner with a bunch of people and going to bed early so I will be rested for tomorrows departure to NZ.

Thank You

Well it is almost time to say goodbye. Today is my last day at work and on Friday I'll be leaving for training in Colorado. Before I go I thought it would be appropriate to give a big thank you to all the great people that have helped me along the way. Without these people this would not have been possible.

Thank you:

• Buddy Marsh for giving me this great idea and also for all the help you gave me with the move. You are a great friend with a great family.
• Nancy O'Brien, Tammy White, Todd Wright, Jaime Robertson (Miles), Amber Morse for giving me a great reference in order to get the job.
• Big Skip and Linda for helping with countless trips with my junk and organizing the storage unit.
• Wanda Huff and Wise Rokobili for your support as I learn to entertain, open mics in Antarctica will never be the same.
• Thank you to all the great people who have helped me over the years including the great people at Vermont Adaptive, the friendly Vermont Cavers, high school and collage friends, soccer buddies, and drinking buddies.
• Most off all the great O'Brien family for letting me live with them and become part of their family. Your love and support is greatly appreciated and I will never forget it. Thank you Ian for letting me be your big brother and read you books at night. Cavan, you were the first baby I've ever held. Nancy, you make a great southwestern apple crisp. Sean, you grow the best vegtables around.

I'm sure I have forgotten others, but I assure you, everything is appreciated. The next steps are CO on Friday, I leave for New Zealand on Sunday, and will leave for the McMurdo Station next Thursday. Thank you EVERYONE!

Rice On Ice Going Away Bash

Last night the O'Brien's threw an amazing going away party where 50+ of my friends showed up to wish me luck. The afternoon started off a little slow but as the day progressed, so did the party. There was amazing food including Wanda's famous wings, Nancy's "Rice On Ice Cake", and Kathy's cabbage salad.

Around six o'clock, the drinking games began which included a shot ski (four shot glasses mounted to a ski) and beer pong. I didn't realize beer pong was a family game, but Buddy's son Hunter really got a kick out of it (we filled his cups with water). Although we all had fun, it stayed low key with Wise's great music and a few (too many) songs played by myself. Mary (Kampie) was the only one who cried a little, but I am going to miss her just as much.

In one week my flight leaves Denver for New Zealand! I have my tickets, I'm almost done at Stryker, and still have a little packing to do. This week is going to go fast, but what a great weekend! Thank you to all of those who showed up, we had fun and I am going to miss you all.

Book #4 (Shackleton's Forgotten Men)

Shackleton's Forgotten Men wasn't a great book, but if over the winter you are looking for an interesting story then I recommend it. The book starts off slow and by no means is there a Hollywood ending, but it is history. From the little I remember about Shackleton from the IMAX movie I watched with my brother back in Boston, it was a failed attempt at crossing Antarctica. Shackleton's story is interesting because after his ship was trapped (and crushed) in sea ice, he and his men, survived by hunting seals and traveling from ice flow to ice flow. Shackleton then built a small sailboat from the scrap wood and sailed to a small island that he needed to traverse to find help at a whaling village. The great part of the story is that out of the 20+ crew, everyone survived even after spending 2 years in the barren place.

Shackleton had a great outcome, but on the other side of the continent, he had a team of men setting food caches for his trip. These are the men of this story. The best part of the story is when the men are marooned after a storm that rips the ship from its mooring. This leaves 10 men with few supplies and equipment. To survive (and complete their task of laying the food caches), they found old food and equipment left behind by Scott and his men.

I don't want to kill the story, but like the other books I read, scurvy takes its toll. It may be worth while to research this trip on the Internet instead of reading the whole book.

About Antarctica

In less than one month I'll be on my way to the ice. I have sold my home, given my notice at work, and have begun the final preparations. I thought that before I head south I should share some interesting facts about McMurdo Station and answer some FAQ.

Where am I headed? I am headed to the largest US station in Antarctica, McMurdo Station. That station is located on a small island connected to the the rest of the Continent by the Ross Ice Shelf and was used by many of the first explorers as a jumping off point. The station sits about 850miles north of the South Pole. The US runs two other stations, Amundsen-Scott Station at the south pole and the Palmer Station on the Antarctica Peninsula. To get there I will be headed first to Denver Colorado for orientation. Then to Christchurch New Zealand to pick up ECW and then on to the ice. I copied a map off the Internet to help show what the continent looks like. In the role I have on the Ice I may get to travel to locations like the Geographic South Pole and the Dry Valley.

What is ECW? To the military it is Extreme Cold Weather clothing. While in Christ Church the NSF (National Science Foundation) will issue me the proper clothing for the job. Each station has different requirements as to what clothing will be issued, but the following is a list of what can get issued. It may be difficult to work wearing all this clothing.

• Duffel Bag
• Balaclava, polar fleece
• Boot, Rubber, Thermal
• Cap, Yazoo
• Carhart Coveralls
• Neck Gaiter
• Goggles
• Polar Fleece Jacket
• Glove Liners
• Mittens
• Polar fleece pants
• Bibbed wind pants
• Parka (Big Red - you will see many pictures with big red after I get there)
• Wool Tube Socks
• Thermal Underwear

What is the weather going to be like? Well it won't be as bad as you may think. The mean temp is 0F and can reach a high of 46F. However the mean wind is 12 knots and can reach over 100 knots. The following is a list of how weather can be classified. If you wish, search the Internet for more info on the mean temp or YouTube for a great movie of Condition 1. Although the summer is warmer than the winter, this is also the time of year for the worst storms.

Severe Weather Condition 1
Issued when at least one of the following conditions is occurring or imminent:

• Sustained wind speed greater than 55 knots
• Wind chill temperature colder than -100°F (-73°C)
• Visibility less than 100 feet

Severe Weather Condition 2
Issued when at least one of the following conditions is occurring or imminent:

• Sustained wind speed 48 knots to 55 knots
• Wind chill temperature -75°F (-60°C) to -100°F (-73°C)
• Visibility 1/4 mile to 100 feet

Severe Weather Condition 3

• Issued when all conditions exceed criteria for Condition 2

What will I be doing? My job title is Operations - GA (General Assistant). This means I am going to be jack of all trades. Some days I may be shoveling snow while others helping input data into the database. I could help with building projects or even use heavy equipment. I know I didn't go to school to drive a big forklift called a "pickle", but how cool is it to do that in Antarctica? I'm not sure exactly what I'll be doing, but I assure you if I do anything worth mentioning, I'll post it on the blog.

How many people are at McMurdo Station? Each year about 1,200 people are sent to spend the summer (your winter) at McMurdo. 34% of them are women (I know the odds aren't in my favor) and all of them are as crazy as I am. I will be working 6 days a week with 9hr days but in my spare time I'll be able to enjoy such activities as bowling, rock climbing, soccer, XC skiing, hiking, drinking at 1 of 3 bars... Above is a picture of the station. Most of the orange specs you see are large crates used to ship supplies in.

Will it be dark the whole time your there? Nope! I'll be there in the summer when the sun is up the whole time. Because it is not at the exact pole, McMurdo does not get one long day/night a year but pretty close to it. I'll get to see the sun circle over head until it will set for the first time in Feb when daylight over a day will quickly fade to a longer nights.

I hope this answers some questions and please feel free to add comments after a post. Also don't forget to sign the guest book!

Passed!

A little bird just told me that my name has appeared on the flight manifest for October 11th. This means that I passed! I have successfully completed the PQ (physical qualification) screening process. Everyone that deploys to the ice must first complete a comprehensive PQ screening to ensure medical emergencies are averted. The following is my condensed story.

After verbally accepting the position, the process started with a drug test that I needed to submit in Springfield Vermont. I called Lab Corp (the contract lab facility) and told them what I needed done and they informed me that it was a “walk in” clinic and to stop by anytime. I took a long lunch at work one day and headed down. After showing up at their facility they informed me that I would need to come back the following week and arrive before noon. I was very upset that I had been misinformed and wasted two hours of my day, but the following week I successfully completed the drug screen.

Step two was getting all the information for the rest of the PQ off the internet. This was the first year Raytheon Polar Services Company (RPSC) did it entirely online and the instructions were less than perfect. The confusion first started when the instructions informed me to send the pink papers to DSG and the blue papers to HR… but I had printed them all off on plain white paper. The instructions where carry over from the hard copy days. I think I did fairly well with the paperwork but had some issues with pages getting stuck together going through the fax and forms going to the wrong departments.

Next I scheduled my doctor’s appointment as I wrote about in a previous post. When I received the bill from DHMC they did not apply my insurance and the bill came to $850. I was able to get that straightened out with a simple phone call. However when I called RPSC medical department in the beginning of August I found out that my doctors information had not yet been received. I called the hospital again and sure enough, my file was sitting on their desk. I got that faxed out only to receive an email from RPSC informing me that they didn’t have a release form (that I faxed to a different department) and a RPR blood test. I called DHMC to reschedule the RPR asap. I later found out that this is a test for antibodies caused from Syphilis and was a little embarrassing when they cute phlebotomist was drawing my blood. The good news is that I am now immune to the affects of needles and I don’t even get light headed. By the end of it, I got to know Gloria, the receptionist in the Occupational Medicine department, very well (thank you Gloria). Now I just hope they charge it correctly to my insurance.

The dental aspect went well except my dentist was on vacation and a new hygienist did the paperwork. It is also note worthy to mention the dental office is under construction and has a new x-ray machine with a few bugs in it. The hygienist had to “zap” me a few extra times and was still unable to get the fourth picture. I thought for sure I was going to have to go back.

After that whole saga, the PQ process is complete and I am now cleared to deploy to the ice. Next steps include finishing moving my stuff to Swanton and giving my notice at work. Stay tuned as I continue to prepare for my trip to the ice. Don't forget to sign the guest book!

Book #3 (Ice Bound)

A touching tale of a doctor's incredible battle for survival at the south pole. When I read the back cover of this book I really didn't think it was going to be the type of book that captured my attention. However, on Amber's advice, it was put on my book list to read. I remember a few years back watching the Discovery Channel's reenactment of this story and this is what first got me interested in the icy continent. I don't want to get too sappy but by the end of the story I did have a few tears drop from my eye.

Ice Bound is an inspirational story about Dr. Jerri Nielsen and the heroic early season evacuation from the south pole. Dr. Nielsen was diagnosed with breast cancer shortly after the south pole station closed for the winter. While the station is closed there were still about 40 crew members that stay through the winter to keep things running until planes could land again in October. In mid winter (July) temperatures at the south pole reach below -100F in the eternal darkness. Most machines can not operate at this temperature because hydraulic lines break and fuel turns to jello making an evacuation impossible.

A good portion of the book contains copies of emails sent to and from Dr. Nielsen capturing the "true" mood of the events that took place. Having lost my Mom to breast cancer, this book had a little more meaning to it than the others I have read and I could better grasp the fearful emotions. This book is a must read for any adventurer whether it be moving to the south pole or helping a loved one with an illness. The book starts off a little slow but once you reach the half way point you will feel that you are right there trying to survive with Dr. Nielsen.